SUNRISE, Fla. -- You know the playoffs are coming soon when the refs have already put the whistles away for the summer. The league's crackdown on slashing, apparently, has run its course.
Well, it's either that or teams -- wink, wink -- aren't taking penalties against the Penguins anymore, mindful of the NHL's top power play.
Uh, no. Mike Sullivan wasn't having of any that when I asked after Saturday's 6-5 loss to the Panthers at BB&T Center:
Over the past four games, the Penguins have been awarded just three power-play chances. They didn't get their first on Saturday until the 14:07 mark of the third period.
That the Penguins have scored on their last two power play opportunities -- Sidney Crosby against the Hurricanes and Patric Hornqvist against the Panthers -- is commendable. But it's a little hard to believe that the Penguins' opponents are remarkably disciplined.
The Penguins have lived on their power play to this point and it should serve them well in the postseason, but they're going to have to make the most of their chances. What few they get.
2. It wasn't just the lack of penalty calls either.
The most controversial call of the game came late in the second period when Hornqvist scored what was ruled on the ice to be a good goal. The Panthers challenged it and the call was reversed.
Here, you decide:
Not to beat a dead horse, but the problem for the NHL is that nobody -- Evgeni Malkin included --- definitively knows what the rule is.
"We have no idea what's going on in the league, we have no idea the rules," Malkin said. "It's not just our team. I think it's everyone: coaches, goalies. ... I hope we can change rules."
I concur with my comrade on this. This has to be changed at the next board of governors meeting or GMs meeting, whatever, just get it done before the playoffs. It would be a travesty if this decided a playoff series, a la Brett Hull's foot in the crease.
The only ones who seem to like the calls are the goalies, at least when it goes their team's way. The rest of us are in a, um, tiffy?
“As far as I know, you’re not allowed to push the goalie into the net with your stick, so I had it," said Luongo. "It wasn’t covered, obviously, but he pushed my pad into the net so I don’t know why they were in a tiffy that it didn’t count.”
3. Malkin is playing the best hockey in, well, a long time.
It's also no coincidence that Malkin is healthy for the first time in a long time. The Russian has been absolutely dominant, scoring 22 goals in his last 21 games. That's an insane pace in any era.
Phil Kessel has been the team's most valuable player for the entire 63 games this season and I'll stand by that, but Malkin has been the catalyst behind the Penguins' remarkable turnaround since the start of the new year.
Malkin scored two more against the Panthers and trails Russian rival Alex Ovechkin for the league lead. His second goal Saturday was just breathtaking stuff, beating Luongo to the far side with little angle:
With 18 games remaining he has a chance to notch the second 50-goal season of his career. He scored exactly 50 in his Hart-winning season in 2011-12. Is it his best?
Just as importantly, Malkin is making those around him better, most notably Carl Hagelin. The Swede, who had a goal and assist against the Panthers, now has 17 points since Jan. 7.
Said Hagelin of his linemate: "He's showing he's one of the best players in the world, if not the best at the moment. He's skating a lot, he's winning battles. You just see how strong he is on the puck."
It will be interesting to see how the lines shake out when Derick Brassard joins his new team, but I'd have to think that Hagelin will remain with Malkin.
4. But that top line has to go.
Did you see Sidney Crosby out there? No, I mean really notice the captain. Didn't think so.
Sure, he can do something like this, breaking Vincent Trocheck's ankles with this sweet individual move:
But even his posterization of Trocheck didn't end up on the stat sheet. Crosby finished with a secondary assist on Hornqvist's power play goal, continuing a disturbing trend as his frustration has mounted.
He has just a goal and two assists in his last five games and just three goals -- two of them coming in St. Louis on Feb. 11 -- in his last 17 games. He needs some help.
The second line would seem set (see above) and the addition of Derick Brassard will bolster the third. No offense to Dominik Simon, Crosby doesn't have the supporting cast around him. But the salary cap-strapped Penguins do have a cheap option in northeastern Pennsylvania.
With 19 games to go, this would not be a bad time to give Daniel Sprong another look.
5. Matt Hunwick is not cutting it.
Rutherford did not explicitly rule out making another trade after Friday's deal to land Brassard. Saturday's performance might have swayed his thinking, though, after watching his team give up six goals for the first time since before Halloween.
Clearly, the Penguins could use a defensive-minded blueliner who can block shots and play on the PK. You know, someone like Ian Cole.
But he's gone and the Penguins still have to address the position in some form or fashion. Don't know what $434,731 buys you, but another move should be made between now and 3 p.m. on Monday. The Penguins were collectively bad defensively on Saturday, but an upgrade over the Matt Hunwick who struggled against the Panthers is required.
The pairing of Cole and Jamie Oleksiak had solidified the defense in recent weeks. On Saturday, Hunwick was minus-3 while Oleksiak was minus-2.